Schedule: 2009-09-12 (15:45 - 16:30)
Parallel Session 1 (Room A-30)

Title: Working online together to enhance learner's autonomy
Authors: Christine Develotte, Jerôme Eneau
Abstract: The study focuses on the development of individual autonomy in an online learning program. Unlike common thinking, learner autonomy is not built in isolation (in autarky) but is grounded in social relations and thus in communication skills that lead to learn with and through others. It is this precise dialectical relationship between the online learner (who is alone to manage his/her learning) and his/her peers (with whom he/she has to work) that is examined in this paper.
Our corpus study is composed of 27 “reflective logbooks” (2,500 signs in average), which were sent by Master students in “Language Science” (an online learning program of the University of Grenoble 3). These documents took part of the evaluation for a course entitled: “discursive approaches of the intercultural”. Most of these students are French teachers abroad. For the course’s evaluation, they had to describe their own learning, including their relationships with other students, one month after the beginning of the course in December 2008.
On a theoretical level, we base our study on research linking cooperation/collaboration at a distance and learner’s identity/autonomy construction (Söntgens 1999; Henri and Lundgren-Cayrol 2001; Bruillard and Baron 2005; Blin 2005; Eneau 2008). On a pedagogical level, we base our approach on the contribution of reflective analysis to the development of learner’s autonomy (Barbot and Camatarri 1999; Guichon 2009), the reflective analysis being part of the core-competencies of the self-directed learners (Tremblay 2003).
On a methodological level, we first quantified the amplitude represented by the themes of autonomy and collective work in the students’ self-analysis; then we conducted a thematic content analysis of the reflective logbooks with the aim to differentiate:
• indicators and determinants of autonomy (the way the learners talk about it, how they define it)
• roles, functions, importance (or not) of the other students in the learning process, and more specifically in the construction of individual autonomy.
Our analysis brings to light the importance of asynchronous collaborative online activity which incites participants to be aware of the benefits and difficulties of working together; working together online is indeed experienced in many different ways, but always implies cooperating without knowing each other. Furthermore, we categorized the different types of contributions from the other students mentioned in the reflective analysis:
• contributions in terms of learning (knowledge, know-how, technical knowledge concerning the use of the platform …)
• socio-emotional contributions (emotional interactions, support …)
• contributions in terms of identity/autonomy development (for meta-cognition, meta-learning skills…).
As a conclusion, we propose a typology of the roles played by the others in the development of online learning and learner’s autonomy.
Keywords: Online learning; online collaboration; autonomy; reflective analysis.

Main topic: Curriculum development for CALL.

Biodata: Christine Develotte is a professor of Information Science at the Institut National de Recherche Pédagogique in Lyon and a member of the ICAR research lab. For the last ten years her main research interests have been linked to computer-mediated communication (CMC). Jerôme Eneau is a senior lecturer in educational Sciences at the university of Lyon 2 and a member of the EDUCPOL research lab. His main interests are linked to adult education and autonomy.
Type of presentation Paper presentation

Paper category Research

Target educational sector Higher education

Language of delivery English

EU-funded project No

Schedule:	2009-09-12 (15:45 - 16:30) Parallel Session 1 (Room A-30)
Title:	Working online together to enhance learner's autonomy
Authors:	Christine Develotte, Jerôme Eneau
Abstract:	The study focuses on the development of individual autonomy in an online learning program. Unlike common thinking, learner autonomy is not built in isolation (in autarky) but is grounded in social relations and thus in communication skills that lead to learn with and through others. It is this precise dialectical relationship between the online learner (who is alone to manage his/her learning) and his/her peers (with whom he/she has to work) that is examined in this paper. Our corpus study is composed of 27 “reflective logbooks” (2,500 signs in average), which were sent by Master students in “Language Science” (an online learning program of the University of Grenoble 3). These documents took part of the evaluation for a course entitled: “discursive approaches of the intercultural”. Most of these students are French teachers abroad. For the course’s evaluation, they had to describe their own learning, including their relationships with other students, one month after the beginning of the course in December 2008. On a theoretical level, we base our study on research linking cooperation/collaboration at a distance and learner’s identity/autonomy construction (Söntgens 1999; Henri and Lundgren-Cayrol 2001; Bruillard and Baron 2005; Blin 2005; Eneau 2008). On a pedagogical level, we base our approach on the contribution of reflective analysis to the development of learner’s autonomy (Barbot and Camatarri 1999; Guichon 2009), the reflective analysis being part of the core-competencies of the self-directed learners (Tremblay 2003). On a methodological level, we first quantified the amplitude represented by the themes of autonomy and collective work in the students’ self-analysis; then we conducted a thematic content analysis of the reflective logbooks with the aim to differentiate: • indicators and determinants of autonomy (the way the learners talk about it, how they define it) • roles, functions, importance (or not) of the other students in the learning process, and more specifically in the construction of individual autonomy. Our analysis brings to light the importance of asynchronous collaborative online activity which incites participants to be aware of the benefits and difficulties of working together; working together online is indeed experienced in many different ways, but always implies cooperating without knowing each other. Furthermore, we categorized the different types of contributions from the other students mentioned in the reflective analysis: • contributions in terms of learning (knowledge, know-how, technical knowledge concerning the use of the platform …) • socio-emotional contributions (emotional interactions, support …) • contributions in terms of identity/autonomy development (for meta-cognition, meta-learning skills…). As a conclusion, we propose a typology of the roles played by the others in the development of online learning and learner’s autonomy.
Keywords:	Online learning; online collaboration; autonomy; reflective analysis.
Main topic:	Curriculum development for CALL.
Biodata:	Christine Develotte is a professor of Information Science at the Institut National de Recherche Pédagogique in Lyon and a member of the ICAR research lab. For the last ten years her main research interests have been linked to computer-mediated communication (CMC). Jerôme Eneau is a senior lecturer in educational Sciences at the university of Lyon 2 and a member of the EDUCPOL research lab. His main interests are linked to adult education and autonomy.
Type of presentation	Paper presentation
Paper category	Research
Target educational sector	Higher education
Language of delivery	English
EU-funded project	No